To excel in sports, it is necessary for one to possess not only strength and stamina, but balance and coordination as well. Indeed, virtually every sport places demands on its participants to move and contort the body in ways in which it is generally not accustomed. Perhaps the most challenging of these movements include proper rotation of the body (i.e., rotation of the shoulders, back and torso relative to the legs), in conjunction with shifting one""s weight from one leg to another that must accompany such movement, in anticipation of or in reaction to a given event. For example, a baseball player making a swinging motion with a bat in response to a pitch, a golfer making a swing, or a tennis player hitting either a serve, forehand or backhand shot must properly rotate and balance the body during such action. Each such sport requires the proper timing of shifting and rotation, such that at the moment of impact, the athlete""s weight and stroking motion will drive the ball in a desired manner and preferably to a desired location. Further examples can be found in the sports of skiing and surfing which require participants to properly rotate and balance the body so that the center of gravity of the person is properly maintained in response to the size and contour of a slope or wave.
Numerous devices and methods are known in the art for developing strength and stamina. Typically, trainers direct athletes to utilize free weights or weight machines to strengthen specific muscles or muscle groups. For stamina, athletes are typically directed to utilize stationary machines such as treadmills, stair climbers, rowing machines, and stationary bicycles.
While generally effective at facilitating the development of cardiovascular endurance by increasing the heart rate, lung capacity, etc., such devices are generally linear in nature and cause the user thereof to engage in a single repetitious activity oriented toward making a forward motion. In this regard, none of the aforementioned classes of cardiovascular exercise equipment place any emphasis on rotational movement, let alone develop the balance and coordination that typically must accompany such movement.
To address such need, trainers have traditionally taught proper rotation and weight shifting without the assistance of special equipment by (1) instructing and demonstrating to a person a body movement (i.e., tennis stroke, golf stroke, etc.) to be acquired, (2) observing the person mimic the trainer""s instructions/demonstration, (3) providing feedback to the person (e.g., by videotape), and (4) repeating the cycle until the person has acquired the desired level of coordination and balance. Initially, such instruction typically includes a step by step list of specific body movements that attempt to impart on the person the mechanics of balance and coordination associated with such body movement. To accomplish this task, the trainer will explain the proper mechanics of balance and coordination associated with each body movement. However, the person typically just mimics the trainer""s body movements without the proper mechanics of balance and coordination, which thus produces sub-optimal results because although the person thinks the body is moving as instructed, in actuality it is not. In this regard, the difficulty of learning the mechanics of balance and coordination associated with a body movement is due to the fact that such movements are not natural movements, but rather are movements only performed within the realm of a specific sport which the person is trying to learn.
Compounding the difficulties in instructing the proper mechanics of balance and coordination for a given sport is that a person is instructed to practice such body movements while standing on stable ground. However, stable ground allows a person to compensate an unbalanced and uncoordinated movement without any awareness as to which aspect of the body movement needs to be modified to achieve optimal balance and coordination. Typically, after the person fails to improve his or her balance and coordination, the instructor, trainer or coach further instructs that person to continue practicing the body movement hoping the person will improve. The instructor, etc. fails to understand, however, that balance and coordination of a person cannot be improved by merely instructing the person to improve; rather, the person needs to isolate the balance and coordination component of the body movement to improve one""s balance, such that a person may have instantaneous feedback when the movements are not balanced and coordinated.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a method of teaching the mechanics of balance and coordination such that a person may experience proper balance and coordination during the performance of a body movement. There is additionally a need in the art for method of teaching the mechanics of balance and coordination that can be incorporated into sports instruction, and in particular the instruction of tennis, golf, and the like, to better improve upon an athlete""s performance. There is yet further a need in the art for such a method that is safe and easy to implement, utilizes minimal, low-cost equipment, can be utilized to improve an athlete""s performance of any of a wide variety of sports and can be practiced both indoors and outdoors year-around.
The present invention specifically addresses and alleviates the above-identified deficiencies in the art. In this regard, the present invention is directed to an improved teaching method for developing balance and coordination.
The initial step of the method comprises providing an apparatus, the latter comprising: 1) a stationary base member positionable upon a planar surface; 2) a first platform surface rotatably mounted upon the base member, the first platform surface being formed to rotate about a first axis; and 3) a second platform surface rotatably mounted upon the base member, the second platform surface being formed to rotate about a second axis. After being provided the apparatus, the person mounts the same by placing each foot on a respective one of the first and second platform surfaces. The person may practice body movements, such as tennis ground strokes and golf swings, that include a xe2x80x9cfigure 8xe2x80x9d pattern of movement of the person""s hips. To achieve such motion, an individual stands upon the device such that one foot is received upon the first platform surface and the respective other upon the second platform surface. While in such position, the knees and elbows are comfortably bent with the arms extended out in front of the individual. The individual then slowly turns his or her feet from the left to right to the left again such that the hips engage in a rotational movement simulating a figure eight pattern. In this respect, the body movements mimic a substantial xe2x80x9ccork-screwxe2x80x9d movement up and down. As should be appreciated, the invention is not limited to tennis ground strokes and golf swings; rather, these are merely examples of body movements in specific sports where the xe2x80x9cfigure 8xe2x80x9d pattern of hips is inherent.
The process further preferably is applied to improve a person""s balance and coordination for a given motion by conveying information to a person about a body movement in conjunction with the apparatus, as discussed above, wherein the body movement includes the xe2x80x9cfigure 8xe2x80x9d movement of the person""s hips. Such movement is specifically incorporated into any of a variety of motions inherent for a given sport. For example, almost every sport requires the proper xe2x80x9cformxe2x80x9d and such form is generally initiated at the hips. Specifically, the xe2x80x9cfigure eightxe2x80x9d movement is incorporated as part of a tennis stroke, and in particular, a forehand, backhand and/or serve, a golf swing, a baseball bat swing, and the like and is practiced as part of performing a given motion.
To that end, the information generated from such usage maybe conveyed to a person through a pre-recorded medium such as a video or audio tape or through live instruction. Furthermore, the trainer may observe the person perform the exercise on the apparatus, then provide constructive feedback to further improve the person""s balance and coordination. In this regard, the apparatus, when used to perform a given stroke or movement, may be integrated into an instruction or training regimen to improve a given individual""s ability to play a particular sport, and more particularly, to perform the movements and strokes of a given sport with greater proficiency.